Mainstreaming Environment and Sustainability in Pupils' Perception: Challenge for Tertiary Education in Kenya

Abstract:

Education is acknowledged as the vehicle by which humanity establishes
conceptual understanding. Alllevels of education (primary to Tertiary) are interlinked
in a casual chain like pattern, with the preceding laying the foundation for
the proceeding. Tertiary education (all learning levels after secondary education,
including university education) in particular, has a catalytic role for the building of
a learning society through:
Conducting the scholarly research necessary to generate the new knowledge
needed,
Training leaders and teachers of tomorrow and,
Communicating the needed knowledge, values, attitudes and skills to decision
makers in particular and the public at large so as to empower them to bring
about changes required to achieve sustainability (Copernicus-Campus,
2001). Calder and Clugston, (2006) equally concur that Education is critical
for promoting Sustainable development and improving the understanding
capacity of people 'to address environmental and development issues
amicably.
The concept "perception" is taken in this paper to mean "understanding." The
perception of environment is therefore regarded as similar to the understanding of
the concept of environment. Understanding is a psychological process that relates
an abstract such as a person with another object whereby one who understands a
concept reacts appropriately to the same (Wiklpedia, 2006). This premise implies
that understanding the concept of environment is a pre-requisite to appropriate
reactionwithin the environment. One that understands the concept of environment
obeys the commands given by the environment. This is because understanding is
the awareness of the connectedness of the concerned information in a concept,
which allows one to put his/her knowledge into action (Reddy, 2006).